Teaching and Learning

Building Vocabulary Through Everyday Conversations

Did you know that some of the best opportunities for building your child’s vocabulary happen during everyday conversations? Whether you are walking to school, cooking dinner, driving in the car or reading a book together, talking with your child helps them hear and learn new words in meaningful contexts.

Children develop vocabulary when they hear unfamiliar words, discuss what they mean and then have opportunities to use them themselves. Try introducing interesting or more specific words into everyday conversations. Instead of saying, “That is a big dog,” you might say, “That is an enormous dog!” and talk about what enormous means. You can also encourage children to explain their thinking by asking questions such as, “What makes you think that?”, “Can you describe it another way?” or “What do you think that word means?”

These everyday conversations are an important part of developing the language they need to understand what they read, communicate their ideas and learn across all areas of the curriculum. Every conversation is an opportunity to learn a new word!

Danielle Phillips

Teaching and Learning Leader